Fantasy football: If you've made it this far, study the recent trends to stay in the hunt

Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton during the second half of an NFL football game against the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Mo., Sunday, Dec. 2, 2012. (AP Photo/Colin E. Braley)

Be sure to give an impassioned halftime speech this week -- you don't want to get beat by the 4 o'clock games -- and remember to study the recent trends.

Like this one: Ten borderline starters or fantasy backups whose stocks have risen dramatically in the last month -- so much so, most of them are must-starts in the playoffs.

Just for fun, we'll rank them in order of projected value for the rest of the season.

1. Cam Newton, QB, Panthers -- Of course he's a must-start, you're probably thinking. Well, Newton wasn't in his first eight games, when he had five touchdown passes, four rushing TDs and eight interceptions.

Now, he might be a top-five QB, thanks to a four-week run in which he has thrown for 1,031 yards and nine touchdowns, with only two picks. Newton has also rushed for 177 yards and two scores in that span.

Maybe you were playing Andy Dalton or another impressive mid-round QB in Newton's place.

You won't be the next three weeks, a stretch that includes great matchups in Week 15 (at San Diego, No. 21 vs. the pass) and Week 16 (vs. Oakland, No. 25 vs. the pass).

2. DeMarco Murray, RB, Cowboys -- Last Sunday, in his first game in seven weeks, the Cowboys didn't take it easy on the oft-injured Murray. He had 27 touches -- sorry, Felix Jones owners -- and scored a TD.

He should be considered a decent No. 2 running back the rest of the season. Dallas' matchup against Pittsburgh (No. 5 vs. the run) in Week 15 isn't enticing, but if you make it to Week 16, Murray might reward you for your patience. The Cowboys play the Saints, the league's worst against the run, in fantasy championship week.

3. Tony Romo, QB, Cowboys -- In Weeks 3-9, Romo had six TDs and 11 interceptions in six games. Hopefully, he wasn't on your bench -- or the waiver wire -- in the last four games, a span in which Mr. Erratic has thrown for 1,266 yards, nine TDs and two interceptions.

His upcoming matchups aren't great, at least until New Orleans in Week 16, but with Romo, that doesn't matter. What does is which QB shows up from game to game.

We'll bank on Good Tony making a couple more cameos.

4. BenJarvus Green-Ellis, RB, Bengals -- He was awful in his first nine games as a Bengal (537 yards rushing, three TDs and 3.4 yards per carry). He's been excellent in his last three (348 yards, two TDs, 5.0 yards per attempt).

In the next two weeks, Green-Ellis will face the league's No. 17 (Dallas) and 18 (Philadelphia) run defenses.

5. T.Y. Hilton, WR, Colts -- The rookie has three 100-yard games and four TDs in his last five contests. In that span, he's had three games with six receptions each, and two games in which he didn't do much.

We'll anticipate more of the former against three defenses -- the Titans (No. 26 vs. the pass), Texans (No. 19) and Chiefs (No. 9) -- that have allowed a combined 69 TD passes in 36 games.

6. Chris Givens, WR, Rams -- A good rule of thumb: If point-per-reception machine/injury-waiting-to-happen Danny Amendola is limited or out with a foot ailment, start Givens. The rookie fourth-round pick has 16 receptions for 207 yards and a TD in his last two games, and he's averaging 16.9 yards per catch on the season. The schedule the next few weeks includes the Bills, Vikings and Buccaneers, who have given up a combined 61 TD tosses. Tampa is the league's worst pass defense.

7. Danario Alexander, WR, Chargers -- His first appearance as a Charger wasn't until Week 8. In his last four games, he has 23 catches for 406 yards and three scores. The only drawback: In Weeks 14 (the Steelers, No. 1 vs. the pass) and 16 (the Jets, No. 4), the Chargers will match up against teams that have a combined 26 interceptions (paging Philip Rivers owners, if there are any left), compared to 22 TD passes allowed.

8. Sidney Rice and 9. Golden Tate, WRs, Seahawks -- Amazing what a competent QB can do. In his last five games, Rice has 21 receptions for 311 yards and five TDs. Tate has 15 catches for 231 yards and four scores in his last four contests. The latter has seven TDs, all since Week 3. Both are No. 3 receiver options in fantasy.

10. Russell Wilson, QB, Seahawks -- As I wrote in a blog post this week, if you have made it this far (in the fantasy season, not the column), you're probably not looking for a QB. But if you're the gambling type, Wilson has five consecutive games with at least two touchdown passes, and he has nine TDs and zero picks in his last four.

On the year, Wilson has two more TD passes and eight fewer interceptions than Andrew Luck.